Rookie QB takes over a struggling team in his first NFL start today in D.C.

PHILADELPHIA — — As Nick Foles evolves into what the Philadelphia Eagles hope will be their quarterback of the future, every nuance of their 100-million gigabyte playbook will be open to him whenever necessary.

Not now, not in his first NFL start, which will come today in a hostile environment outside Washington D.C. against an equally desperate opponent.

The Washington Redskins enter today's clash (1 p.m., FOX) with an identical 3-6 record and a rookie starting quarterback of their own. But until Foles can begin to match the remarkable efficiency of Robert Griffin III, the Eagles' coaching staff does not want to be too unrealistic, which it ironically might have been with Michael Vick.

Vick, out indefinitely with a concussion suffered in last Sunday's 38-23 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, never was able to make full use of the bountiful talent around him, probably because of the lack of experienced talent in front of him.

Their offensive line decimated by injuries, the Eagles have been unable to protect Vick and have largely been unable to get their running game going. The result has been an alarmingly inept average of 17.3 points per game, 29th worst in the league.

Foles will never be able to run or throw a ball 50 yards off his back foot like Vick and, at 23 years old, cannot possibly read defenses as well as Vick right now.

Still, he's earned the right to take over the reins. But it's anybody's guess which way he'll follow up last week's uneven relief appearance against the Cowboys. Foles completed 22 of 32 attempts for 219 yards and a touchdown, but he also gave the Cowboys a pair of defensive scores on an interception and a lost fumble.

He rallied the Eagles into the lead before helping them give it up with his two ugly turnovers.

The lesson?

"I think the big thing is just football," Foles said. "I've played since I was a kid. Of course, it's the highest level there is. I just want to play within myself and play within the offense. This offense is the kind where you accomplish goals and we have plays designed so we can do things."

According to offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg, Foles is making steady progress.

"He is certainly working hard on the field," he said. "There's quite a bit of excitement, I think, in this situation because of a couple of things. No. 1: the situation we're in. Can we get it done and make a run here? Secondly, with a rookie quarterback there is certainly some excitement there."

The way Foles played throughout the preseason and most of last week's game, it's not unreasonable for the Eagles to believe they at least have a chance to win with him.

He's shown remarkable poise in the pocket and surprising deftness to go with it. Foles won't win too many foot races in this league, but he's shown the ability to sidestep just about anyone and the height, at 6-6, to see over anyone in front of him and spot open receivers perhaps even quicker than Vick, listed generously as 6-0.

That said, there is no way they can open every chapter of the playbook to Foles the way they did with Vick and Donovan McNabb.

"That's part of the plan," Mornhinweg said. "As far as volume, we've talked several times already. I know, he knows and the rest of the football team knows that there are certain things he can do very, very well. We'll play to what we think and what he thinks his strengths are."

Perhaps his biggest asset is his background in handling a jailbreak pass rush, something his predecessor will see in his dreams for the rest of his days, thanks to a broken down line that routinely allows these kinds of things on every other pass play.

Vick absorbed around three seasons' worth of punishment in the nine games he played this season, which likely and, if his outspoken brother Marcus is to be believed, thankfully for him will be his last in Philadelphia.

Vick, in fact, may have played his last game as an Eagle.

Foles experienced the kinds of uncharacteristic protection breakdowns that have befallen the Eagles' offense this season throughout his entire senior year at Arizona.

Times 10.

Like Vick, he kept picking himself up, dusting himself off and going back to the huddle.

Coming into a professional system like this, despite all the regular malfunctions up front, was actually an upgrade for him.

Foles did not take any sacks in the preseason, despite taking most of the snaps. And although he was sacked twice in last Sunday's first real appearance, he made defenders miss a lot more than they hit and he showed excellent timing in getting rid of the football.

Having been a teammate of Vick has helped him deal better with the inevitabilities of what will happen, though.

"I've watched Mike all year," Foles said. "I've learned a lot from him and the guy's a tough dude, one of the toughest guys I've ever seen. He gets hit, he gets right back up. He gets hit, he gets right back up and he keeps firing. He's not afraid to launch. He's not afraid to fire it.

Today's game could go a long way toward determining whether the baton has been passed to Foles for good.

The offense won't look the same with his limitations, but that doesn't necessarily mean it will be worse.

Sometimes, as the Eagles learned in 2006 with Jeff Garcia and in 2002 with A.J. Feeley as injury replacements for McNabb, less can be more.